Citation. Nuzzo, V. A. 1986. Extent and status of Midwest Oak Savanna: presettlement and 1985. Natural Areas Journal 6(2):6-36.   [1456  CC]

Abstract. Oak savanna covered some 11,000,000 to 13,000,000 hectares of the Midwest at the time of settlement, extending over portions of Minnesota, Iowa, Missouri, Illinois, Wisconsin, Michigan, Indiana, and Ohio. Definitions for the community vary between the states, due in part to different concepts of the presettlement appearance and structure of the community, a general lack phytosociological data about oak savanna, and difficulty in interpreting historical data. Community definitions, a map of the real or potential extent of presettlement oak savanna, and location and description of high-quality savanna remnants are presented for each state. In 1985, 113 sites totaling more than 2,607 hectares of relatively high-quality oak savanna were located in the Midwest, approximately 0.02 percent of the presettlement extent of the community.